Tubular knitted fabric



oct. 1s, 1932. -T H, JONES 1,883,297

` TUBULAR KNITTEDFABRIC e e 17. 1929 y 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 f Sii/QQ@ APatented is, 1932 UNITED STATES THOIAB HENRY JONES, 0B' WOODTHBPE, ENGLAND TUB'ULAB KNITTEID FABRIC Application illed J'une 17, 1929, Serial No. 871,580, and in Great Britain Inly 21, 1928.

e principal feature of the present invention consists in a tubular knitted fabric' which is composed of a lurality of series of interlacing or intermes ing stitches, cerl tain of the stitches being disposed in an opposite sensethat is to say, drawn in an op osite direction to the remaining stitches an the Wales formed between the stitches of one series bein disposed at an angle to 16 the wales forme between the stitches of another series.

Another feature of the invention resides in a fabric as above wherein successive stitches of one series mesh or cross progres- 20 sively in successive knitted-courses with another series.

A further feature consists in the provision of a knitted tubular fabric having certain of the stitches drawn in an oppos1te direcu tion to the remaining stitches wherein the entire circumference of the fabric is traversed by the component thread or threads and wherein one series of needle wales is dis- Osed at an angle to and are meshed or 80 interlaced with another series of needle wales.

The type of knitted fabric 'o which this invention refers is that known as ribbed fabric having needle wales on both faces formed by drawing loops in op osito directions, such fabric being distinguis ed from plain or unribbed fabric having needle wales ,on one face only formed b drawing all loops in the same direction, an it will therefore be appreciated that in a ribbed fabric certain of the stitches are drawn in an opposite direction 'to the remainder.

In another particular construction the fabric in accordance with this invention is composed of twoseries of mutual loops of opposite sense or direction formed from a com mon thread or threads traversing the entire circumference ofthe fabric and producing spacedneedle wales onboth faces, together with a third series of stitches of one sense or direction occupying the sinker wales on one face so as to form a solid face, the needle wales constituted lby one series of mutual loops extending at an angle to the needle wales on the opposite face.

In one method of producing fabric in aecordance with this invention, a circular knitting machine may be employed having two sets of needles carried respectively b a cylinder and a dial arranged concentrica ly with and internally of the cylinder, cams beingv associated with the two carriers for coacting with the needles to draw and form thread loops from one or more'thread feeds. Instead of, as is the present practice, providing an equal number of needles in each carrier one carrier is provided with a greater number of needles than the other and means are associated for providing relative rotary movement between the two needle carriers in m such a manner that at each revolution of the machine there will always be a point or predetermined number of points at which a needle of the one set is located between two needles ofthe other set, that is to say, a posi- 7; tion for cam operation, yarn feed and mutual stitch formation; in other words the relative positions of any pair of needles comprising one needle of each carrier will always be the same at a fixed point or a predetermined numso ber of fixed points at an given time, the relative rotary movement etween the two needle carriers causing successive needles gradually to assume the'position of such pair as they approach' the said fixed point or ponts, and gradually diverging fromfsuch position as they recede from the fixed point or points.

In this wa a fabric is formed comprising two series o needle wales one on each face, the one seriesof wales, i. e. the wales on one face, being caused to extend at an incline or an le to the other series on the opposite face.

It will be appreciated that if the continuous relative displacement of the two needle carriers is at the rate of one stitch of displacement erhoiizontal row or course of stitches, and the entire circumference is traversed by the component thread or threads of the fabric, the needle wales on one face will each be made up of a succession of'st1tches from the 100 l Referrin now to Fi res 1 and 2, C indicates the knitted loops ormed on the cylinder needles and Dthose formed on the dial needles and it will clearly be seen by reference to 4igure 2 that by s ogging the dial relatively to the cylinder to the extent of one needle space at each revolution, i. e. course, the knitted loo s D are shogged or drawn across the loops C knitted in between successive pairs of loops ltion of such fabric.

VC around the fabric at successive courses.

When, however, the customa tension is applied to the fabric the inclination assumed by the needle wales produced on the dial needles becomes shared by those produced on the cylinder needles, thus causing the stitches C of the cylinder needle wales on one face of the fabric to become inclined in an opposite direction to, and to an'a proximately equal extent as, the stitches D o the dial needle wales on the opposite face of the fabric.

In Figures 3 and 4 is shown a fabric produced by needles operating in three carriers, e. g., a cylinder, internal dial and external dial, the knitted loops produced by the cylinder and internal dial needles being drawn in opposite directions so as to form s aced needle wales on both faces of the fabric, and the external dial needles producing plain stitches which occupy the sinker wales on one face, i. e. the front face, so as to lill in said sinker wales and produce a solid face.

.The needles in the internal and external dials are actuall disposed opposite to each other, e. in ra ial alignment, but in order to facilitate a clear understanding of the mode of construction and to avoid confusion, the fabric has been drawn in Figures 3 and 4 as though the needles of the two dials are laterally spaced. C designates the knitted loops produced by thel cylinder needles, DI those produced by the internal dial needles, and DE those produced by the`external dial needles.

The cylinder needles take thread and knit at each course, and such needles may on alternate courses combine with the internal dial needles to produce ribbed fabric and on the remaining alternate courses with the exand successive loops D become` ternal dial needles to make plain fabric. In the construction illustrated 1n Figures 3 and 4 both dials are shogged in o posite directions. In Figure 4 is shown t e dial needle stitchesy shogged relatively to the cylinder needle stitches to the extent of one full needle space in each successive course, but it will be ap reciated that in the actual fabric produc the tension on the cylinder needle stitches to drawn at an angle bythe dial stitches as shown in Figure 3.

Where ribbed fabric is produced by the employment of two sets of needles only, the knitting may be effected on alternate needles or on-alternate groups of needles in each set at each thread feed, and the shoggin regulated. accordingly. In this type of abric two or more threads must be employed and the webknitted by one or more threads be# comes interlocked with the web knitted by the remaining thread or threads.

A characteristic feature of the fabric produced in accordance with this invention is that in all its forms it ma be regular and continuous in construction t roughout its entire circumference that is to say, whatever patterned effect is produced in the stitch formation such effect 1s repeatedl throughout the whole circumferential area of the fabric. For example, if for the pur ose of a patternin effect the grouping of t e needles is varie the variation may be continuous throughout the whole area of the fabric; and whereas fabrics have hitherto been produced on warp knitting machines in which the stitches of two sets of stitches are shog ed or displaced laterall it has not hitherto en practicable to prodiice circular or tubular fabrics with shogged stitches from one or comparatively few threads in relation to the number of needles and in which the shogging is continuous throughout the entire circumference of the fabric.

A machine constructed and adapted to produce the fabric herein claimed is described and claimed in an application filed by me concurrently herewith, and bearing Ser. No. 371,562, which application has since matured into Patent No. 1,817,566, dated August 4, 1931.

I claim arn causes the 1. A tubular knitted fabric comprising two series of mutual or intermeshing loops or stitches, the stitches of one of ing drawn in an opposite direction to the stitches of the other series, said two series being produced from common thread or threads and forming spaced needle wales on both faces of the fabric, and a third series of stitches occup ing the sinker wales on one face of the fabric and the series of stitches on one face of the fabric extending at an angle to the series 'of stitches on the op osite face of the fabric, each of the seriespf stitches said series bef bei of uniform structure throughout with-1 out reak or gap.

2. A tubular knitted fabric composed of two series of interlacin or interm 5 stitches drawn in mutua ly opposite directions, the stitches appertainin to each series extending progresslvely an continuously and without break or gap in the same direc= tion in a spiral manner in relation to the lo fabric, and the two series of stitches being disposed at anangle to each other.

3. A tubular knitted fabric formed of two groups of loops, one grou being drawn in the opposite direction -to t e other group to form a ribbed fabricwherein all the loops of one roup incline. in the same direction in relation to the length of the' fabric to constitute continuously leilitending diagonal stitch wales the loops of which cross the loops belonging to the other grou 4. A tubular knitted fa ricjformed of at least two groups` of loo s, thefloops of one group being drawn in t e opposite direction 'i to the loops of another group'to form a ribbed fabric wherein all the oops of one oup are drawn obliquel to form a series o continuous diagonal stitch wales', while the loops of another group extend obliquely in the opposite direction to form a furtherj'series of con-s tinuous diagonal stitch walesintersecting with the lirst mentioned stitch-wales.

5. A tubular knitted fabricformed of at least two groups of loops of which one group is drawn in one direction and another grou in the o posite direction to form a ribbe fabric, w erein all the loops of one oup are drawn obliquely to form a series o continuous spiral stitch wales on-one" face of the fabric, the loops of another oup drawn in 40 the opposite direction all inc ining obliquely in the op osite direction to the first group to form a urther series of continuous spiral stitch wales on the other face of the fabric and intersecting the firsty series of stitch wales.

6. A tubular knitted fabric formed of two oups ofl one of which is drawn in one irection an another of which is drawn in the op osito direction to form a rib bed fab ric an the third oup of loops occupying the sinker wales o one face to 've the aparance of a lain unribbed fa ric on that ace,'wherein t ve loops of one group are all drawn obliquely to form a series of spirally extendin continuous stitch wales on one face of the fa ric2 the loops of the group drawn in the op osite direction being all inclined obliquely 1n the ofplposite direction to the first f group to form a rther series of spil-ally extending continuous stitch wales on the opposite face of the fabric inte with the first series and the third group o loops occupying the spiral sinker wales between the spiral stitch wales on one face of the fabric "5 THOMAS HENRY JONES. 

